Creating SSH Keys

Public key authentication (SSH Key) is a more secure alternative to password authentication
that allows users to avoid entering or storing a password, or sending it over the
network. Public key authentication uses the client computer to generate the key-pair
(a public key and a private key). The public key is then provided to the remote
computer's administrator to be installed on that machine. To use your Aspera
product's transfer-client functionality with public key authentication, follow the
steps below.

You can use the application GUI to generate key-pairs and to import existing
key-pairs. You can also generate key-pairs using the command-line; for instructions,
see Creating SSH Keys (Command Line).

In the SSH Keys dialog, click to bring up the New SSH Key Pair window.

The SSH Keys dialog is also available from the
Connection tab in the Connection Manager. When
you select Public Key for authentication, the
Manage Keys button appears; clicking it opens the
SSH Keys dialog.

In the New SSH Key Pair window, enter the requested
information. Click OK when finished.

Field

Description

Identity

Name your key pair, such as with your user name.

Passphrase

(Optional) Set a passphrase on your SSH key, which will be
prompted for whenever it needs to use the key. If you don't want the
user to be prompted for passphrase when logging in, leave this field
blank.

Type

Choose between RSA (default) and DSA keys.

Access

When sharing a connection with public key authentication, or a
connection that is has a Hot Folder (on Windows machines), this
option must be checked.

Distribute the public key

Provide the public key file (for example id_rsa.pub) to your server administrator, so that
it can be set up for your server connection.

To copy
or export the public key, click the key in the SSH Keys
window, click Copy Public Key to Clipboard, and paste
the string into an email to send to the server administrator, or click
Export to File and save the public key as a file.

For information on how
to install the public key on the server, see Setting Up a User's Public Key; however, the server may
be installed on a different operating system from the client.

Set up connections using public key authentication

When your public key has been installed on the remote host by its server
administrator, click Connections to bring up the
Connection Manager.

Click the Connection tab, then select the
Public Key Authentication option and select the
key that is installed on this host.

Note: When you are sharing a connection with public key
authentication (Share this connection with all users on this
computer checkbox is checked), the SSH key should be shared
as well.

To import keys created outside the GUI, go to Tools > Manage Keys to
open the SSH Keys dialog. Click the button in
the upper-left corner of the dialog to open a file browser. You can import the key
pair by selecting either the private key or the public key; this will copy both keys
into the user's .ssh directory. You cannot import a key pair if a key pair
with the same identity already exists in the .ssh directory.

Imported key pairs can be shared with other users. In the SSH Keys dialog, select a key and
click the button to open the Edit SSH Key
Pair dialog. Select Access to allow shared
connections to use this key. Shared keys are moved to the Enterprise Server
etc directory.